This screenshot made from a video shows players of Hong Kong and Iran during a match at the Ice Hockey World Championship in Sarajevo, capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Feb 28, 2023.

Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said the Hong Kong government will seriously address the latest national anthem blunder at the 2023 Ice Hockey World Championship, stressing that it will hold accountable any persons found to have failed to follow the official guidelines.

At the Ice Hockey World Championship on Feb 28, a song linked to Hong Kong’s 2019 anti-government protests was played instead of the national anthem for the Hong Kong team.

The Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong (SF&OC) submitted a detailed report to the government on Monday, which assessed the Hong Kong Ice Hockey Association (HKIHA)’s role in the incident.

Speaking ahead of the weekly Executive Council meeting on Tuesday, Lee said it is the responsibility of stakeholders involved in international events to ensure that the national anthem is played, and that playing the incorrect song in place of the national anthem will seriously hurt people's feelings.

Lee said the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau will meet with representatives of the SF&OC to analyze how this incident happened and discuss what measures should be taken against it.

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Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said it is the responsibility of stakeholders involved in international events to ensure that the national anthem is played, and that playing the incorrect song in place of the national anthem will seriously hurt people's feelings

He added that the measures will not affect the interests of the athletes, noting that their training and the participation in games will not be impacted.

He said the government will investigate whether the HKIHA followed the guidelines issued by the SF&OC, and also whether the organizer of the championship has handled the issue properly. He noted that some organizers of international sports events may not accept the SF&OC's request and could be inclined to search for the national anthem on Google by themselves.

Lee reiterated that the government has repeatedly requested Google to display the true national anthem for Hong Kong teams on its search engine, which Lee said is in accordance with the company’s policy and within the scope of its responsibilities.

In a Tuesday statement, Hong Kong Ice Hockey Association acknowledged that that the incident could have been avoided if it had abided by the guidelines issued by the SF&OC.

The association added that the championship organizer confirmed again on Monday that Annie Kwan Yuen-yee, head of Hong Kong’s ice hockey team, had repeatedly asked the organizer to check that the national anthem was correct, but had been ignored due to the organizer's busy schedule.

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The association said that in future competitions, it will instruct the athletes not to enter the competition venue if the national anthem has not been verified as correct.